DRINKING a cup of tea from a proper, old fashioned cup and saucer may seem like a simple pleasure.

But for Annie Dimmick, it’s a habit that’s turned from a passing hobby, into a passion – and now a business.

Annie, from Piddlehinton, has been running Vintage Dorset with her family for the past six months, after buying the company from a friend.

Having had a love for all things vintage for as long as she can remember, she now spends her days in seventh heaven, matching up crockery and supplying bunting and decorations for cream teas, baby showers, lunches, birthdays and weddings.

“I’ve always been living in a different era,” joked the 46-year-old.

“It’s not so much the dressing up, but it’s a passion for old things and beautiful glass. I’ve always been fascinated with history, I’m not a living in the modern world person.

“Technology just baffles me. If you go back to the 1930s, 1940s, I love the morals and lifestyle. Women always dressed up, the men always wore hats.

It’s going back to old family values.”

It seems Annie is not alone in her passion – the trend for vintage-style weddings is becoming increasingly popular in Dorset, much to her delight.

“Vintage weddings have been on the turn for quite some time,” said Annie.

“A lovely thing about using vintage items is you can dress it up or dress it down. You can have a real vintage theme, or mix it with all modern things. It’s really bespoke for each client.

“It’s just lovely to see people, especially at a wedding – everybody picks up a cup and says ‘oh, I had one like this’, or ‘my grandma had one like this’. It’s a real talking point.”

It may sound like Annie spends all day playing tea parties – but she in fact spends most of time chained to the kitchen sink.

“Most of the crockery can’t go in the dishwasher,” she explained.

“So it all has to be washed by hand, so when you’ve done a tea party for 150 people there are 150 cups, 150 saucers and 150 plates to wash and dry.”

Annie can currently cater events for up to 250 people – slightly less for dinner as she doesn’t quite have enough plates.

Most of the crockery she does have – which usually takes up residence in the back room of her converted stable home – is mismatched, as sets are hard to come by and can cost as much as £8 each, even from car boot sales.

“We’ve got to know what goes with what, so I know which patterns will go with which colour,” she said.

“But when it’s all mismatched, it’s beautiful. And it definitely makes the tea taste different, it’s just lovely.”